• August 13, 2009

Kelley Blue Book says that last month the top five brands heading in an upward direction in terms of online shopper interest were Ford, Chevrolet, Kia, Hyundai and Jeep. Heading down in July, per the firm were Honda, Saturn, BMW, Pontiac and Nissan.

The firm says Kia saw a jump due to the popularity of its all-new Soul and the introduction of its all-new Forte, and Hyundai due to its heavy promotion of the Genesis coupe and sedan. Jeep got on the list for the Patriot small SUV, which is garnering more attention now due to recent heavy incentives and its eligibility for new-car purchase under the federal Cash for Clunkers program, per Kbb.com.

Ford traffic saw the largest year-over-year share of market interest increase compared to July 2008 per KBB, which says the Fusion and Fusion Hybrid models drove interest.

Saturn and Pontiac's declines were due to General Motors' decision to sell the brands, per Kbb.com.--Karl Greenberg